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Space considerations for startup....

Hello all! This is my first posting, so bear with me...

[First, a little history...]
I have been [essentially] unemployed for about 16 months, even though I'm currently driving a limo to try to pay bills. When I did have a real job, I was heavily into homebrewing and actually took a week-off from work to attend the one-week "Microbrewery and Pub Brewing Operations" course from Siebel Institute in Chicago back in 1995. Things, then, got crazy and busy, and I didn't have as much time to brew as before. Now, I'm trying to get back in the swing....

[Currently...]
I was just talking with the owner of a chain of pubs in the Chicagoland area, and he expressed an interest in adding his own brew to the menus and might be willing to fund an operation to support 3 pubs. His challenge to me is to create about 3-4 recipes right-off-the-top. [So, I'm busy cleaning-out my garage to make room for my new, unused, 10-gallon system, which I purchased from "Beer, Beer, and More Beer" last summer for this very reason, to create new recipes and market them so I can be hired somewhere as a start.]

[Finally, to the question...]
I've been thinking that a 15-bbl system with 4 fermenters might keep him supplied at all 3 locations. Any thoughts?

[The second...]
Assuming the equipment mentioned above, along with the necessary supporting equipment, plumbing, grain handling, etc.,
what square footage would you suggest? Bear in mind that I'm a fairly large guy, so I need a little extra space to gain accesses.

your first question - hard to speculate on what volume will keep your boss in beer for three venues, when none of them are currently venues which serve micro brewed beer. 4 fermenters will give you plenty of scope to brew different styles, but you could refine one or two styles, and learn to do them well, especially if you don't have a lot of experience with commercial production. Remember that the ongoing success of the venture (and your ongoing employment) will have a lot to do with the quality of your beer, rather than the volume that you produce.

Polar1 Go to the Specific Mechanical Systems web site as well as the Northern Brew Systems site. They have some good info on space requirements. If you will be hunting for equipment talk to Ian Day at NABS he is the best. good luck

Thanks. In response to "Mr Brau", the quality of my beer would
always be great!

Years ago, when going through my training, there were rumors
that Illinois was going to require brewing equipment to be
stainless. [The brewpub where I went through training was
using copper. I suspect that the reason he 'went-under' a
few years later was related to the costs involved in converting.]

Next question is, is there a resource in this site or some kind
of link to brewing-related legislation, by state? Or do I need
to make a bunch of phone calls?